topic Re: GST in Buying

GST

2611geoff — Wed, 02 Mar 2022 23:02:07 GMT

Hi do i have to pay GST on secondhand items(including postage)?

Re: GST

papermoon.lady — Wed, 02 Mar 2022 23:22:55 GMT

Yes, if they come from overseas.

Re: GST

2611geoff — Wed, 02 Mar 2022 23:58:34 GMT

Item is from South Australia.

Re: GST

papermoon.lady — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 01:00:20 GMT

Well, then it should already be included in the price if the seller has registered for GST. Most receipts (also in you buy in a real store) will indicate GST at the bottom.

Re: GST

papermoon.lady — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 01:05:10 GMT

I think the threshold for registering is a turnover of $75,000.

Re: GST

2611geoff — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 01:07:36 GMT

Hi , if as you say

"Well, then it should already be included in the price"

Then GST does apply to secondhand goods.

I'm confused----easily done!

Best regards Tatum

Re: GST

papermoon.lady — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 01:12:32 GMT

Yes, it does apply to secondhand goods.

Re: GST

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 01:38:29 GMT

@2611geoff wrote:
Hi , if as you say
"Well, then it should already be included in the price"
Then GST does apply to secondhand goods.
I'm confused----easily done!
Best regards Tatum

FOR DOMESTIC PURCHASES ONLY:

IF you are buying from a 'casual seller' then there is no GST on 2nd hand items.

If you are buying from a business that is registered for GST then GST is included in the Buy-Now or Auction price.

GST can not be added after you hit the Buy-Now button or win an Auction.

FOR OVERSEAS PURCHASES:

GST is applied to the transaction total. This includes item cost + P&H + Agent fees (for Global Shipping Program if used) + anything else included in the transaction.

If the overseas transaction total exceeds $1,000 then GST rules may differ (I am not experienced in this area, digital*ghost may be able to help)

Re: GST

2611geoff — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 01:40:12 GMT

Problem solved .

I bought the item through Reverb.

No mention of GST on this secondhand purchase.

Seller cancelled my Ebay bid and came out a winner----less fees.

Yes there must have been GST on the original import.

Best regards.

Re: GST

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 04:29:55 GMT

@2611geoff wrote:
Problem solved .
I bought the item through Reverb.
No mention of GST on this secondhand purchase.
Seller cancelled my Ebay bid and came out a winner----less fees.
Yes there must have been GST on the original import.
Best regards.

are you saying the seller cancelled your bid and you then purchased direct from them away from eBay?

Re: GST

countessalmirena — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 04:32:21 GMT

You said what I was thinking, k1ooo…

Re: GST

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 05:16:48 GMT

*** I have decided not to wait for a reply from the OP. The information below is important, for both buyers and sellers, who may not be aware of eBay’s rights to claim fees on off-eBay sales ***

eBay have policies that are designed to protect buyers who use eBay.

When you find an item on eBay but proceed to buy from the seller off-eBay (i.e. away from eBay) you forfeit all buyer protections as you have effectively excluded eBay from the transaction.

HOWEVER, eBay can and do claim fees from sellers on off-eBay transactions when they find out about the sale OR just suspect that a sale has been made. They do so because sellers agree to T&C when signing up with eBay. The dead giveaway to eBay is when bids/transaction are cancelled and items are not re-listed. Attempting to save on fees by taking transactions off eBay does not nullify eBay’s rights to fees AND the seller risks being sanctioned, suspended or even kicked off eBay permanently.

The justification of the legal position on this is that eBay, through hosting the listing, introduced the buyer to the seller.

This legal concept has also been used in Real Estate property sales in Australia. If an agent is engaged to sell a property but the vendor decides to enter a private sales agreement with someone who saw the property listed with the agent, then the agent is deemed to have introduced the buyer to the vendor. As such, the agent is entitled to a commission on the sale if it it proceeds as a private sale. I have represented this concept simplistically here, but there have been legal decisions supporting this concept.

**disclaimer**

I have no legal training or qualifications. However, I have selling experience on eBay across 4 eBay IDs. I have also read the eBay T&Cs and these forums widely and have seen threads started by sellers who come here complaining that eBay took fees for items they sold off-eBay.

Re: GST

2611geoff — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 05:20:04 GMT

Hi , are you saying that Ebay has a monopoly ,and no one can sell their items on other platforms at the same time ,while being listed with Ebay?

Interesting----maybe it's in the small print.

Best regards.

Re: GST

domino-710 — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 05:23:31 GMT

It's totally in the print - not small.

Re: GST

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 05:38:52 GMT

@2611geoff wrote:
Hi , are you saying that Ebay has a monopoly ,and no one can sell their items on other platforms at the same time ,while being listed with Ebay?
Interesting----maybe it's in the small print.
Best regards.

*edited to add* yeah, what dom says, AND

You really should read up on eBay policies and T&Cs. It is not in any small print.

Sellers can sell across several platforms and eBay can not stop them from doing so. HOWEVER, an item listed on eBay needs to be available for purchase through eBay.

I’ll use some examples as a way to explain tis.

Example 1 - small time casual seller selling their own items

A casual seller lists an item on eBay. eBay policy says this item should not be available for purchase elsewhere (like fb BSS). Call this exclusive if you want. Listings stating “item is listed in other places” can be removed by eBay if reported.

Example 2 - a business with an eBay account AND a shopfront

When a business lists an item (that they only have one of) on eBay they are expected to sell on eBay when a buyer finds their item on eBay. If they have a shopfront, and many do, they need to remove items from eBay if it sells through their shop trading. Best practice for these businesses is only list items on eBay that they have multiples of, AND, if a buyer is identified through eBay then sell on eBay.

Example 3 - a big retailer selling through eBay

The retailer needs to ensure they have enough stock to service their eBay listing and other selling platforms. If their listing has “9 available” in the quantity they need to have 9 available for sale on eBay.

Bottom line is that sellers need to pay eBay a fee when a buyer sees an item on eBay and buys that item. The grey area comes when a listing runs its course without selling and a buyer subsequently buys the item directly from the seller, but that is whole other can of worms.

Re: GST

papermoon.lady — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 05:37:13 GMT

I think he is saying that you cannot find or list an item on eBay and then proceed to complete the transaction off eBay.

I think that listing on different platforms (for example eBay and the other site starting with E) is allowed, but I am not sure, as I am not a seller. I have seen very reputable sellers list the same items on both sites. On the other hand, I recently bought an item from a seller on the other site, and I know I had bought from the same seller on eBay too, but they don't have the same items listed.

Re: GST

2611geoff — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 06:09:47 GMT

Hi , now with my seller hat on.

At the moment i have a listing on Ebay that is currently on Facebook and Reverb.

This is not an auction , it is buy now.

At the start i had 5 x item for sale.

Facebook has sold 4 items.

Now there is one item on 3 platforms ,all "buy now" and no "make an offer."

Is it a case of first in best dressed or am i totally restricted to Ebay?

Thanks for all your replies.

Re: GST

papermoon.lady — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 06:32:13 GMT

I did a quick search, and yes, it confirmed that it is allowed as long as you respect the rules of each site.

On eBay in particular never ever link to other sites, as this is definitely not allowed.

Re: GST

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 06:47:28 GMT

@2611geoff wrote:
Hi , now with my seller hat on.
At the moment i have a listing on Ebay that is currently on Facebook and Reverb.
This is not an auction , it is buy now.
At the start i had 5 x item for sale.
Facebook has sold 4 items.
Now there is one item on 3 platforms ,all "buy now" and no "make an offer."
Is it a case of first in best dressed or am i totally restricted to Ebay?
Thanks for all your replies.

my understanding of selling on eBay gives you 2 choices:

- pull the eBay listing and keep the others

- pull the other listings and keep the eBay listing

If you keep them all, and the item sells on eBay as well as one of the others, then you may get a 'defect' against your selling account on eBay if the eBay sale is not honoured.

You really should read the eBay Agreement, especially as it applies to selling. Nobody that posts on these discussion boards does so as an eBay employee or representative.

You can not rely on anything posted on these discussion boards as a defence if you get sanctioned by eBay. The eBay Agreement trumps all other information/advice.

I won't post on this thread again until you read the eBay Agreement. You should have received an email about an update in these last few days.

Re: GST

2611geoff — Thu, 03 Mar 2022 09:51:17 GMT

Will do , but gee it's beer oclock in the west.

Best regards